January 2015 Archives

The mere mentioning of the words, "traumatic brain injury," or TBI, to a person in Newton will create fear and trepidation. When the phrase is uttered with a child's injury, the response can be even worse. A head injury can lead to brain injury. With that, there is always the risk of long-term damage. With a child, his or her life can be significantly affected by this. The statistics are clear regarding the incidence of traumatic brain injury in children.

When a child in Newton is set to undergo surgery, the parents are unavoidably worried about what is going to happen. While the majority of doctors and medical professionals who are involved in the procedure take great care with any surgery, they are extra careful when children are involved. However, all the caution in the world does not avoid inevitable mistakes that can happen. Surgical errors may not happen particularly often, but they are still exceedingly dangerous. One such mistake is surgical equipment left inside a patient.

In Newton and across the nation, medical treatment that involves being given medication, placed under anesthesia and undergoing surgery is always a danger to the patient. There's a vast amount of trust placed in medical professionals when there is any kind of treatment being given. This is why a wrong drug, anesthesia error or a fatal medication error is not just an egregious mistake, it can be seen as a betrayal of everything a medical professional is supposed to be. These mistakes can lead to long-term injuries and death.

Patients in Newton and throughout Massachusetts who face the fear of being diagnosed with cancer are relieved when they're told they're in the clear or prepare for treatment when they're told they're facing the dreaded disease. However, the number of mistakes that are made with a failure to diagnose cancer or diagnosing the disease when the patient is not suffering from it can cause a vast amount of damage to the patient and his or her family. Some suffer a worsened condition if the diagnosis is missed. Others receive or come close to receiving treatment they don't need when there has been misdiagnosed cancer.

People in Middlesex County who put the health of themselves and their loved ones in the hands of medical professionals expect that the professionals will take the utmost care with prescription medication. However, that doesn't mean that mistakes won't be made. Some of these mistakes may be understandable, but many are simply careless. Some may lead to serious injury.

In Newton, and across the country, people who are preparing to undergo surgery must be aware of the possibility that a surgeon's mistake will cause them damage or even kill them. These surgical errors in its various forms are called "never events" because they are mistakes that should never happen. They are surgeries in which the wrong body part is operated on, the wrong procedure is done or the wrong patient is operated on.

People in Boston who are subjected to a misdiagnosis for a health issue are not alone. Studies have shown that a large number of mistakes made when diagnosing health problems have led to major payouts from legal filings. Recent studies showed that almost $39 billion was paid out from 350,000 claims over the previous 25 years. Researchers who looked into this problem studied data from the years 1986 to 2010. 35 percent of the mistakes that were made that resulted in payouts were based on misdiagnosis. The studies focused on cases that wound up with a payment made to claimants.

A nightmare scenario for people in Boston and across the country who go to a medical professional or emergency room exhibiting symptoms is to be misdiagnosed. When there is a mistake or a missed diagnosis, the patient can be subject to delayed treatment and worsened condition. Many associate this type of incident with various cancers, but the spread of disease is not the only issue that a patient can face. There are other aftereffects if a misdiagnosis is made regardless of the issue the person is suffering from.

When Massachusetts parents are preparing to have a baby in Boston, they are preparing the baby's room, thinking about how to have everything ready in time and anticipating the celebration. This can all be destroyed if there is an issue that leads to a premature birth. This can have numerous consequences for the child that can be a lifelong issue with the accompanying medical expenses. It is important for parents who have had a child prematurely to understand the consequences and learn of any mistakes on the part of the medical staff at some point that led to it.

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